philippine studies
Ateneo de Manila University • Loyola Heights, Quezon City • 1108 Philippines
Charles E. Deppermann S.J.:
Philippine Scientist
James J. Hennessey
Philippine Studies vol. 5, no. 3 (1957): 311–329
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Charles E.Deppermann S. I.:
Philippine Scientist
JAMES J. HENNESSEY
B
Y COMMAND
OF GENERAL
MACARTHUR:
in March 1945 in
the Philippines, papers which concluded with that phrase
were given immediate attention. To Father Deppermann,
just freed from the concentration camp of Los Bafios, a
set of papers ending with that phrase was handed which gave
him priority on a plane which was to take him to Washington
D.C., there to attend meetings a t the Pentagon.' Why was this
priest, broken down in health by the starvation diet of the internment camp presented with "telegraphic invitational travel
orders" to Washington? His travel papers gave the answer: for
"consultation in connection with weather matters." Father
Deppermann had so contributed to the science of tropical
meteorology that his opinions on Far East weather were considered important. He was flown to Washin,@on almost as soon
as he could stand the strain of the travel.
On the eighth of May this year (1957) just as certainly a
war casualty (though years after the event) as any victim of
a blockbuster, he died piously in the Lord and ended his scientific work a t Manila. The mere enumeration of his publications
1 Travel papers of Father Deppe.rmann in the Manila Observatory
archives.
312
PHILIPPINE STUDIES
is a tribute to his genius and his industry.Vn this article, a
summary of his scientific achievements is presented.
I1
In August 1905 Charles E. Deppermann Jr., a lad of sixteen, had the boyish joy of seeing the first of his many published works appear in print. I t was an answer book to
Schultze's Advanced Algebra done in cooperation with the
author and William M a n g ~ s e . ~
Young Charles had shown his
interest and adeptness in mathematics by solving every problem in the book. The quality of this work is indicated by the
fact that it was reprinted nearly twenty-five years later in
November 1929. In the preface to another book, Gmphic
Algebra published in December 1907, Dr. Arthur Schultze
says: "The author desires to acknowledge his indebtedness to
Mr. Charles E. Deppermann for the careful reading of the
proofs and for verifying the results of the examples."* For a
boy who had just completed four years in the New York High
School of Commerce, this first work gave promise of future
success in mathematics and science.
In 1910 Mr. Deppermann entered the Novitiate of the
Society of Jesus a t Poughkeepsie. After four years of spiritual
and classical preparation there, he went to Woodstock College
for philosophy. Here he could devote more time to mathematical and scientific studies. Apparently he excelled in these
matters for he was not only exempted, by previous examination, from some of the prescribed courses but he so favorably
impressed his professors and superiors that they determined
that his special talent should be fostered by graduate studies
2 A complete list of Father Deppermann's published works will
be found in the special section on Philippine Bibliography in this issue.
His published works include 63 titles, of which 22 were published
separately and 41 in periodicals.
3 Arthur Schultze, Ph.D. Answers to Schltze's Advanced Algebra.
Compiled by the author with the assistance of William P. Manguse
and Charles E. Deppermann, Jr. New York. The MacMillan Company. 1905.
4 Arthur
Schultze, Ph.D. Grupllic A l g e b ~ a . (New York, MacMillan, 1907) p. v.
HENNESSEY: CHARLES DEPPERMANN
313
in physics. But before he could begin those studies he had to
conclude the three years of philosophical and the four years
of theological studies a t Woodstock. In 1920 he was ordained
a priest in the Dahlgren Chapel at Georgetown University. An
additional year a t St. Andrew-on-Hudson terminated for him
the customary and long course of studies (in his case twelve
years instead of the usual fifteen) common to Jesuit priests.
He was now ready to resume his study of the physical sciences.
On the advice of an older Jesuit (Father Edward Phillips
who had taken his dodorate in mathematics) Father Deppermann pursued studies not in mathematics but in physics. As
considerable training in mathematics is a prerequisite for a
dodorate in physics, he would thus have training in both
sciences. During his three years a t Johns Hopkins University
in Baltimore, Father Deppermann made the acquaintance and
won the friendship of several renowned professors as well as of
his classmates. Many of the latter were to become outstanding
scientists of our time. Among his professors were Dr. Joseph
Ames (later president of Hopkins), Dr. Pfund (whose name is
associated with a spectral series for hydrogen) and Doctors
Anderson, Murnaghan and R. W. Wood. His classmates included Merle Tuve (a pioneer in ionospheric physics and at
present director of the department of terrestrial magnetism at
the Carnegie Institution), Joseph Kaplan (who is now chairman of the U.S. National Committee for the International
Geophysical Year) and Ferdinand Brickwedde (chief of the
division of cryogenics for the National Bureau of Standards).
As a student a t Hopkins, the Jesuit was a bit older than his
fellow students. He felt that this gave him advantage over
the younger men because earlier he had had more time for
private study. He might have finished his doctorate in two
years if his first project had not met with a difficulty beyond
his control. The particular defect was discovered later on by
R. W. Wood who wanted to use similar equipment for one of
his research projects. A laboratory technician had coated the
interior of a vacuum tank with a paint which volatilized into
314
PHILIPPINE STUDIES
the space of the vacuum. (This experience Father Depperrnann
remembered all his life and took special cognizance of it in
his planning of the restored Manila ~ b s e ~ a t o r y ) .
,
The work on a second project was a succbss under Dr.
Pfund. This was published as an article in the Astrophysical
Journal entitled "Some Studies of the Stark Effect." Hii
knowledge of the German language a t a time when German
scientists were preeminent leaders in scientific productions was
a notable asset. In his doctoral thesis he also refers frequently
to work done by Japanese scientists. This is an interesting
point in view of his subsequent life. Unlike so many candidates,
Father Deppermann had no fears about his comprehensive doctoraf oral examination, giving as his reason his long experience
as'a Jesuit in takhg oral examinations.
I t was the wish of his superiors that Father Deppermann
should prepare for the work of the Manila Observatory which
a t the time was also the Philippine Weather Bureau. Despite
his doctorate degree in physics, he realized he still needed more
proximate preparation for Observatory work. To this end, the
year 1925-26found him a t the University of California and the
Lick Observatory studying astronomy. He believed that talent
alone was not enough but that thorough training was necessary
in order to obtain solid scientific results.
On his arrival in the Philippines in September 1926 he was
assigned to the Manila Observatory as chief of the astronomical division. This was the year of the World Longitude
tests. To participate in that world study he determined in the
two, following months the longitude of the Manila Observatory
by radio means. His results were closely in agreement with
values previously obtained by cable means. To complement
this work in longitude, in January 1927 he observed star pairs
with a transit telescope to obtain the latitude of the Observatory.
As astronomical chief, it was his principal task to provide
for the time service which the Observatory was rendering to
HENNESSEY: CHARLES DEPPERMANN
315
the entire Far East. This he improved by painstaking care
and with the aid of a new clock so that "the accuracy which
was obtained, less than one-tenth second error, put the Manila
time signals into the First Order grade under the Classification
of the United States Hydrographic Office of the U. S. Navy.""
At this time the variety of his scientific interests is a p
parent from his published works. In those early days of
ionosphiic discovery he was writing about the height of the
Heaviside layer, the name commonly given to the ionosphere
when so much less was known about it. Several studies likewise were made of electricity in the atmosphere a t Manila.
T h e famous nineteen-inch refractor telescope a t the Observatory on Padre Faura Street was subjected to a number of
scientific tests and a report was written. He published a t that
time a star atlas adapted for fifteen degrees north latitude,
that is, central Philippines. Father Deppermann made the
charts with the feature original with him, though not uniquely
so, of printing the northern and southern sky on the same
page. They were monthly charts and showed the stars visible
in Manila (and the Philippines) which meant incorporating
almost all the stars of both hemispheres.
The occurence of the total solar eclipse of 1929 afforded
him his first and only opportunity to visit the southern Philippines. In conjunction with a party, including the famous
Schmidt from Hamburg, Germany, the Manila Observatory
party had Father Deppermann in charge of the expedition to
Sogod, Celbu. The "seeing" a t Cebu during the eclipse nearly
spoiled everything from the visual and photographic standpoint. Still, he took and published his electrical observations
on atmospheric potential.
Back in Manila, the nineteen-inch equatorial refractor
telescope was used from October 1929 until February 1931 to
obtain information about variable stars. Two lists of these
variable stars were published. All of these activities with
their results found in his publications are an index of the
breadth and depth of his astronomical interests.
W. C. Repetti S.J. The Manila Observatmg (Washington, D.C.
1948) p. 31 et sqq.
316
PHILIPPINE STUDIES
v
The failing health of Father Jose Coronas leading to his
resignation from the Observatory and Weather Bureau after
twenty-four years of service, called for a rearrangement of the
staff. Father Deppermann, toward the end of 1931, was told to
prepare to head the meteorological division. According to his
own high standards of performance he saw the need of direct
preparation for weather work. Consequently, a t the beginning
of 1932 he took ship from Manila for Washington to learn the
procedures of the United States Weather Bureau. These did
not satisfy his needs so he proceeded to Norway to the Geophysical Institute in Bergen and the Meteorological Office in Oslo.
He learned the theories of weather as propounded especially
by Bjerknes and Petterssen, and noted the way they applied
their observations for forecasting. This nine-month period was
sufficient immediate preparation for the best scientific work of
his life. Back in Manila in November of 1932 he was named
assistant director of the Weather Bureau while continuing his
post as chief of the meteorological division. He held this
latter office until succeeded in 1933 by Father Bernard F.
Doucette S.J.
As assistant director, Father Deppermann now devoted
himself wholeheartedly to meteorological problems as his principal and almost sole research study. His papers, of which
twelve particularly explain his theories, are not just articles of
a few pages but rather ample treatises. This is not the place to
explain his theories on the weather. He himself has published
a summary article in the pages of PHILIPPINESTUDIES.~
However, he was a pioneer in applying the Norwegian ideas of
frontal and air-mass analysis to the weather of the Philippines
and its vicinity. In looking over his papers one notices the
clarity of thought and expression that shows the master's
touch. He had a profound knowledge of his subject gleaned
by careful study and selection from the sources. It is worthy
of note that the year 1933 marks a turning point in the historical analysis of tropical meteorology. The shift from the
-6 C.
E. Deppermann S.J. "General Features of
Weather" PHILIPPINE
STUDIES
I1 (June 1954) 102-115.
Philippine
HENNESSEY: CHARLES DEPPERMANN
317
climatological approach to the air-mass method is in no small
measure due to the influence of his writings.
Those who write reviews or summaries of a field of science
endeavor to classify various scientists in a particular school.
By such a leveling process, authors can be dispatched or extolled with the school to which they belong. In tropical
meteorology Father Deppermann belongs to the school of
frontal analysis and air-mass theory. Even if this school of
thought becomes outmoded-and that is surely the trend with
most scientific theories of the last few decades-the papers of
Father Deppermann will still have to be read by any serious
student of typhoons and tropical meteorology. There is more
to his papers than the defense of a scientific position; there is
the clear exposition of the solid basis, the actual observations,
upon which any and every theory must rest. Besides, he is
most careful to make the necessary distinctions which the data
require. He was aware that he was in the vanguard. Constantly, then, he expressed the desire that others would take up the
work either to advance it along the same path or to go back
and proceed in another direction. His conclusions, based on
information which was about as complete as was then available
to anyone, allowed for modification in the light of more
thorough subsequent observations.
When the adequate
meteorology is written the
included. Meteorological
abstracted and presented
in the reference literature
history of typhoons and tropical
work of Father Deppermann will be
Abstracts and Bibliography has
his papers as a permanent feature
of tropical cyclone t h e ~ r y . ~
The Compendium of Meteorology is a large tome whose
aim in part is to "take stock of the present position of meteorology, to summarize and appraise the knowledge which untiring
research has been able to wrest from nature." The name of
Father Deppermann is mentioned there about forty times in
connection with tropical meteorology and more than a half
dozen times in connection with cloud physics. Besides these
7 Meteorologicnl Abstracts and Bibliography American Meteorological Society (Boston) Vol. 7, Nos. 9 and 11, Sept. and Nov. 1956.
references by name ta- his works, there are explanations of the
ideas he has propounded. A few brief quotations from this
authoritative work, done by recognized leaders in their fields,
will illustrate their opinions of his work.
Probably the most systematic analysis and compilation of the characteristics of tropical cyclones were those of De.ppermann for the Philippine
area,s
says Gordon E. Durn of the U. S. Weather Bureau. And later
on the same author singles out Father Deppermann:
Tropical meteorology is deeply in debt to Father Deppermann for his
pailistaking assembly and analysis of typhoon characteristics in the
Philippine area.9
In another chapter Herbert Riehl after several references to
the papers of Father Deppermann states:
Deppermann is one of the few writers who has made a detailed effort
Apart from
Deppermann other writers have contented themselves with application
of simple hydmdynamics.l0
to calculate radial and tangential velocity components.
Charles F. Brooks quotes Father Deppermann frequently and
cites him among others as follows:
For comprehensive discussions of aerological interpretation of clouds,
the reader may refer to. . . the stu&es. . . of convective clouds in
tropics by. . Deppermann.11
.
Scientific works in any language, because of their technical nature, are perforce limited to a few readers. Publishers
do not go to the trouble of issuing translations or reprints of
such restricted work unless the subject matter is of some remarkable worth. Therefore the reissuing of the papers of
Father Deppermann, while he h
l
£
was a prisoner in a Japanese internment camp, was no mere polite compliment nor
8 Gordon E. Dunn "Tropical Cyclones" in Compendium, of Meteovology American hfeteorological Society (Boston 1951) p. 887 col. 1.
9 Zbid. p. 900 col. 2.
Herbert Riehl "Aerology of Tropical Storms" Ibid. p. 907 col. 2.
11 Charles F. Brooks "The Use of Clouds in Forecasting" Zbid. p.
1167 col. 1.
HENNESSEY: CHARLES DEPPERMANN
-
319
obsequiousness. The& was advantage to the people who did
the reissuing. Who were these people artd why did they want
his papers? Tho& who have been' &ncerntd with the new
issues of his papers fall into three groups: (a) Japanese scientists; (b) the Royal Australian Air Force and (c) the United
States Weather Information Branch.
Japanese weathermen have long respected and admired
the scientific work of the Jesuit Fathers of the Manila Observatory. Perhaps, experience of some typhoons striking them
from the Philippines has helped towards this appreciation. At
any rate, Father Deppermann's works were eagerly studied by
the Japanese. To make sure the younger meteorologists wodd
have access to his papers, they translated at least nine of his
papers into Japanese. Besides arranging the translation, Dr.
Kazuo Ogasahara has been especially laudatory of Deppermann's research work. In publishing his own work, Kishogaku
Tsuron (Handbook of Meteorology), he expressed his debt of
thaqks to Father Deppermann as follows:
On the completion of my new book, I should like to express my sincerest
gratitucle in the name of science to Father Deppermann whom I owed
many guidances and helps directly and indirectly in my present work.
Dr. Deppermann, the famous scholar-priest has shown a profound understanding for the Bergen school. The Father has bestowed many
suggestions and advices on me in my long studies and is regarded as my
great benefactor in my researches of the South Seas meteorology.
That explains why the weathermen of Japan translated so
many of Deppermann's articles into Japanese.
The second group of scientists to make use of Father
Deppermann's works were the Australians. After the outbreak
of World War I1 the Meteorological Service of the Royal Australian Air Force sent a letter to the Riverview Observatory
in Australia requesting the loan of Father Deppermann's Upper
Air Circulation in the Philippines and Adjacent Regions. This
was sent to them. It was returned a month later. After a
further month there was another request for a second loan.
This was on 27 March 1942 when the loan was made. Finally,
a year later, the director of the Meteorological Service returned
the copy to Riverview with this statement: "This work has
320
PHILIPPINE STUDIES
proved so valuable to us that we have had it reproduced for
general distribution to forecasting officers." The reproduced
copy is like the original, except that it is a looseleaf edition
in a stiff cover on which the title is reproduced as in the original, with the following additions: a t the top "R.A.A.F.,
Directorate of Meteorological Services" and a t the bottom, "For
Official Use Only" and "Reproduced a t Melbourne, January
1943."12
The Forces of the United States did not fail to take cognizance of these valuable papers. They too reproduced a t
least four of his papers. Report No. 45 of the Publications of
the Weather Information Branch, Headquarters, Army Air
Forces reproduced in September 1943 Deppermann's Outline of
Philippine Frontology. At the top and bottom of the cover
occurs the word "restricted."
Deppermann's Typhoons
Originating in the China Sea is their report No. 787; The Upper
Air at Manila their report No. 806 and Are Thunderstorms
A r o d Isolated Island Stations in the Philippines Frontal?
their report 820. It is not surprising that the author of these
reports upon his liberation from Los Bafios was given "invitational orders" to go to the Pentagon.
VII
Dr. Ivan Ray Tannehill, now retired from the U. S.
Weather Bureau, has written several authoritative books on
typhoons and hurricanes. One of his recent books is The Hurricane Hunters. To head each chapter of this book he has
selected an apt quotation from some renowned person, among
them Euripides, Shakespeare, Dante, Temyson, I?. D. R. When
he comes to the chapter on typhoons he selects his quotation
from fither Deppermann. In that chapter the author says,
"Father Charles Deppermann S.J., formerly of the Philippine
Weather Bureau, did as much as any man to help people prepare for these catastrophes (typhoons) ."I3
1 2 Explanatory letter from Riverview under date of 27 August
1955 in the Manila Observatory archives.
13 Ivan Ray Tannehill The Huwicane Hunters (New York 1956)
pp. 167-168.
HENNESSEY: CHARLES DEPPERMANN
323
The U. S. 54th Weather Rewnnahance Squadron likewise began its recent (1956) report with a quotation from
Father Deppermann. The author took pleasure in referring to
Father Deppermann as "this eminent scientist, who had been
plotting and studying the characteristics of typhoo~mfor many
more years than there has been a Weather Squadron on
Guam."14
When Major General W. 0.Senter of the U.S.A.F. was
leaving the Air Weather Service, quite spontaneously he took
the occasion to write the following in a personal letter to Father
Deppermann:
Air Weather Service has benefitted from many of the techniques you
have developed and much of the knowledge you have recorded on tmpica1 meteor%logy. Our work in the Philippines at the close of World
War 11 was facilitated by your progressive and cooperative attitude.16
The foregoing illustrations have been given to show that
the period of his life from 1933 until the outbreak of the war
was most scientifically productive. The papers he wrote during
that period are his monument. The reader who merely looks at
the list of titles would scarcely be in a position to evaluate their
worth. But the testimony of world weather men in regard
to their meteorological significance leaves no doubt of the
high place Father Deppermann holds among these scientists
in various countries.
VIII
Sometime before World War I1 started, he devoted much
time and effort to a study very pleasing to him. From this, he
has left a thorough set of notes which have never been published. The notes consider in general the philosophical aspects
of modern physics. The matters treated are divided into six
sections: (1) the special theory of relativity, (2) the general
theory of relativity, (3) the quantum theory, (4) the methodology and scope of modern physics, (5) philosophical systems
Captain Reginald Shinn 54th Weather Reconnaissance Squadron
Report (Guam, June 1956) p. 15.
l5 Private corres~ondence 19 April 1954.
324
PHILIPPINE STUDIES
of modern physicists and (6) the evidence for subatomic particles. These papers show that despite his major field of concentration (meteorology) he still read deeply in the current
literature of physics. In this work the burden of his references
falls upon the periodical literature coming out a t the time of
writing.
With the outbreak of war it was inevitable that his scientific wo& should be curtailed by the interruption of normal
operations. For the first two and a half years he continued
his labors in private (the Observatory buildings and equipment
had been seized by the Japanese) but from July 1944 to liberation days he remained behind the barbed wires of the prison
enclosure a t Los Baiios. The ravages of war not only told on
his health and on the complete destruction of the Manila
Observatory-its buildings, its library and its instruments-but
also for him personally they destroyed the fruits of his previous
work-work which can never be duplicated for the original
m s c e material perished in the ashes.
In the first week of the War five hundred copies of his
monograph entitled Upper Air Characteristics (1-4 k m ) of the
Philippines and Adjacent Regions were published. Despite
planned efforts a t distribution, the havoc of war destroyed
every copy. For years after the war Father Deppermann traced
down every faintest lead about any copy of the monograph but
not one proved successful.
Besides the total loss of that paper, the original and
carbon copy of the manuscripts of seven other papers which he
had laboriously produced during the early years of the war
were completely consumed in the flames of the siege of Manila.
The destruction of these papers is a loss not only to Father
Deppermann but also to the body of knowledge of meteorology.
The titles of these lost papers are listed in the bibliography
published elsewhere in this issue under number 45, itself an
article which summarizes the conclusions of the destroyed
papers as remembered by Father Deppermann after his return
to Washington.
HENNESSEY: CHARLES DEPPERMANN
325
After the liberation of Los Baiios on 23 February 1945
Father Depperrnann was, as we have seen, flown to Washington.
This flight was really the first step in the resurrection of the
Manila Observatory which died in terrible agony during the
Battle of Manila on February 1945. Scarcely taking any time
to recoup his lost energies he threw himself ai once into his
scientific work. He continued to write papers $I meteorology.
All the while he was thinking about the restoration and resumption of the scientific work in the Philippines. At the end
of February 1946 he was back in Manila. Having lost in the
war 5000 of the cloud pictures he had taken, he set out to
duplicate that work. From 3 hilarch 1946 to 15 March 1947 he
took at least one picture daily of the clouds over Manila and
several photos on typhoon days. Much correspondence and
much thinking and praying went into the future work of the
Manila Observatory.
I t soon became clear that the Manila Observatory would
not resume its splendid record in weather work started back
in 1865. The Philippine government had decided to start a
Weather Bureau independent of the Observatory. Father
Deppermann, nothing daunted by the possibility of abandoning the scientific field he had so illustriously served, now turned
his attention to geophysics. After a few months in the summer
heat of Washington he transferred to the equally hot city of
St. Louis in August 1947. For the third time we find him
ma,king immediate preparation for future work. At St. Louis
University under Father James B. Macelwane S.J. he laid the
foundation for his seismological studies. To switch at the
age of fifty-eight to a new field of science and to enter upon
it wholeheartedly is a tribute to his scientific versatility. His
much earlier fundamental training as a Jesuit and a physicist
served him well now.
While a t Georgetown University, he was appointed acting
director of the Manila Observatory on 19 July 1947. On 23
February 1948 he succeeded Father Selga as director. The
effects of the war years and the intense toil a t their close
finally accumulated to wear down his health. He was forced to
326
PHILIPPINE STUDIES
retire to the sidelines for about a year in order to regain his
strength. During this period he was quietly plmning thc
course of the new Observatory. The results of his planning
have been published in the first issue of PHILIPPINE
STUDIES.~~
The resurrection of the Manila Observatory is his greatest
postwar triumph.
In November 1954 a UNESCO Symposium on Typhoons
took place in Tokyo. "It was probably for the first time in the
history of study of tropical storms that so many world authorities on this subject have been able to meet and discuss the
results of their observations and research."17 At the head of
the list of consultants was the name: Reverend Charles E.
Deppermann S.J. When the time came for Father Deppermann's talk, the chairman (Dr. Simpson) amid applause introduced him thus: "Introducing Father Deppermann to this
assembly is like introducing the President of the United States
to his people."
During the Eighth Pacific Science Congress held on the
campus of the University of the Philippines a t Quezon City in
November 1955 Father Deppermann was the convener for the
symposium on microseismology. He produced three papers on
seismology for this congress.ls
In earIy 1956 Father Deppermann was requested to write
a message to introduce a book on weather for the school children of Japan. This was a task of love, for many of those
children of Japan had joined their small coins together to make
a sizeable gift through the UNESCO for the restoration of
some parts of the instruments he needed for the Observatory.
The Japanese author was most pleased with the message and
deigned to put it in Japanese on the first page of the book.
16 Charles E. Deppermann S.J. 'The Manila Observatory Rises
Again" PBILIPPINESTUDIESI (1953) pp. 31-41.
1 7 Proceedings of the UNESCO Synlposium o x Typhoons (Tokyo,
November 1954).
1s Proceedings of the Eighth Pacific Science Congress (1953)
Vol. 1 p. 91.
HENNESSEY: CHARLES DEPPERMANN
327
The author, then, concludes his preface with these words:
This book is treated from first to last with a view to elucidate the
meteorological phenomena of Japan and its neighborhood based on the
Norwegian school. The author feels it a great honor and joy that
Father Deppermann is kind enough to send his message for this little
book to encourage the younger generation of Japan. The present
writer h o w that the joy will be shared by them all. It is also the
author's belief that they, reading this book can well understand Father
Deppermann's frontology which he propounded to the learned circle
and with which he has come to his conclusion. Father Deppermann,
Director of the Baguio Observatory, is de~otinghimself to the valuable
pioneering work. It is the earnest desire of the author that meteorology of Japan will grow into a gigantic tree as a national science
through the hand of our younger generation and the prayer by Father
Deppermann.
Two pieces of private correspondence may be mentioned
here. The first letter, dated 26 August 1953, is from the
executive office of the department of meteorology and climatology of the University of Washington. This letter to Father
Deppemnn requested "that you honor us with an autographed photograph of yourself to be mounted in our Distinguished Meteorologists Panel." The second letter written
in 1956 was addressed to the Manila Observatory from a gentleman in Houston, Texas. It begins: "During World War 11,
Admiral Nirnitz wrote a letter on nphoon Doctrine and addressed it to his Fleet Commanders. In his letter he referred
to the observations made over a number of years by a Father
Deppemnn, at the Manila Observatory." Such quotatiom
may be considered isolated incidents but they do indicate the
extent of the name and fame of this priest-scientist.
A letter written after the death of Father Deppemmn
deserves to be quoted in part. Dr. Kazuo Ogasahara, previously mentioned, after expressing his "deepest regret and sorrow"
for the passing away of Father Deppermann, continues:
My friendly intercourse with him extended about thirty years. The
reason why I had paid unending honor to him was this that he had
lived an honorable life in which, serving both Goct and Nature he
harmonized science with his devotional faith. I believe this way of
living is a fundamental spirit of Catholicism.
PHILIPPINE STUDZES
And again,
Father Deppermann has acquired "air mass theory" and "frontology"
of Norwqgian school and opened up a new era in the sphere of typhoon
researches. His enormous treatises on Philippine typhoons were faithfulness itself. I fear some of their detailed parts may undergo courection with advance of aerological observations, but I firmly believe
that his ideas for the general setup of typhoon origination will not
suffer change. No one can deny that Father Deppermann was a prominent meteorologist.
It is often asked why a Jesuit priest like a Secchi or an
Algu6 or a Faura or a Selga or a Deppermann should dedicate
his life to scientific research. The answer may be stated in the
words of Pope Pius XII. In addressing the delegates to
the Tenth General Assembly of the International Union of
Geodesy and Geophysics held 24 September 1954 the Holy
Father said:
.
We are happy to grant this audience.. for it gives Us the opportunity of making known to this impressive and learned audience, the
interest which We personally take in the development of the sciences,
and which the Church itself never ceases to manifest on every occasion.
The first geodeticians.
were serving the same aims which
inspire modem scientists: disinterested intellectual curiosity, the desire
to measure certain physical phenomena and as a result of reasoning,
to draw conclusions of general value.
..
..
And the Pope continues:
Nevertheless, neither the existence of national and international organizations nor the perfecting of the instruments constitutes the most
important factor in scientific progress. The latter results, before all
else, from human effort, personal initiative and persevering courage,
which can never be supplied by any machine. Is i t not moving,
gentlemen, to think of the fidelity, a t times heroic, of someone or
another servant of science, lost in his far-off observatory, who, due
to the lack of a competent collaborator, must remain a t his post, day
and night for months and years, to assure proper use of the instruments which are entrusted to him?
Scientific eampaigns demand of them so much self-denial, and
(their) success is a tribute to their character no less than to theiicompetency.
HENNESSEY: CHARLES DEPPERMANN
329
And yet, even though endowed with the most wonderful qualities
of mind and heart, a scientist would not be worthy of the name, if
ha did not a t times lift himself above technical considerations and
immectiate solutions to face the essential problem which gives a meaning to the whole of life.10
In another address to the Pontifical Academy of Science on
24 April 1955 the Pope says:
Tha mission confided to you, therefore, ranks among the most
noble, for you should be, in a sense, the discoverers of the intentions
of God. It pertains to you to interpret the book of nature, to describe
its contents, and to draw the consequences therefrom for the good
of all.
Teach others to behold, to understand and to love the created
world so that the admiration of splendors so sublime may cause the
knee to bend and invite the minds of men to adoration.20
Thus spoke the Vicar of Christ. In all things, even in
his scientific work, Father Deppermann the scientist was a
man of God and a priest of Jesus Christ.
The remains of this "prominent meteorologist" lie next
to those of his predecessor, Father Selga, in the Jesuit cemetery a t Novaliches, Quezon City. Father Deppermann is
buried in Philippine soil. He wanted that. His life work was
done in and for the Philippines. Thirty-one years of his adult
life were devoted to his scientific work in the Manila Observatory. All of his previous life was merely a training for this,
his real work. Even the few short absences from the Philippines-and he was always in a hurry to return-were periods
of preparation for some aspect of the work of his beloved institution, the Manila Observatory. May his scholarly example lead
many others to walk in his giant footsteps.
1s Pope Pius XI1 "The Scientist" 24 September 1954. English
trans. in The Pope Speaks (Third Quarter 1954) pp. 253-257.
20 Pope Pius XI1 "Science and Philosophy" 24 April 1955. English
trans. in Th4 Pope Speaks (Summer 1955) pp. 113-120.